'We're taking the work out of hiring by enabling job applications directly on Facebook,' says Andrew 'Boz' Bosworth.

By David KaplanFeb 17, 2017 6:00AM

Facebook is offering U.S. and Canadian employers a virtual “help wanted” sign with the addition of a “Jobs Bookmark” for their Facebook Business Pages.

While LinkedIn has long positioned itself as the “professional social network” with a particular attention towards enterprise companies, Facebook’s Jobs Bookmark is meant at a wider audience. Still, with Microsoft having closed its $26 billion acquisition of Linkedin just two months ago, it was only a matter of time until they began looking more closely at the local level.

The social network is aiming its latest feature at the 40 percent of U.S. small businesses that say that filling jobs was more difficult than they expected, Facebook said in a blog post.

Considering that SMBs employ nearly half the country’s workforce, according to an ADP state Facebook is citing, that leaves a lot of room for driving greater engagement between the 65 million Facebook Business Pages and the 1.32 billion active daily users.

As Facebook noted during its Q4 earnings this past week, only 4 million of those businesses are current advertisers on the social network. Since Job Bookmark postings — like other Facebook business Page posts — will have the opportunity to “boost” a listing and target it to specific interests and demos, this could also represent a significant new area of revenue for the social network as well.

“Last fall, we introduced a number of features that help you discover things around you, decide what to do or where to go, and connect with local businesses. And today we’re taking the work out of hiring by enabling job applications directly on Facebook. It’s early days but we’re excited to see how people use this simple tool to get the job they want and for businesses to get the help they need” Andrew “Boz” Bosworth, VP of Business and Platform told GeoMarketing.

Facebook Jobs: Desktop + Mobile Experience

The ‘Newer’ Help Wanted Section

In a video promoting the Jobs Bookmark, an owner of Illinois’ Dungeon of Doom Haunted House, notes that the hiring process goes on all year. In the past, the amusement and events operator would rely on newspapers and Craigslist to attract applicants.

“But those platforms seemed to die and didn’t promote quality leads for us,” said Peter Koklamanis, the President and Owner at GPT Enterprises, the parent of Dungeon of Doom Haunted House, who adds that he was able to hire 13 individuals via the social network.

“I look for a job every day, but I have no contacts,” says Ashley Bob, a makeup artist, in another Facebook testimonial. “I was in a Facebook group and someone shared the application. I clicked on the company’s Facebook Page and it was so much easier to apply that way.”

This feature is currently rolling out to Page admins and job-seekers in the U.S. and Canada, on iOS, Android, and the web. Businesses will only be able to see information an applicant provides them directly or in their public Facebook profile.

After posting a job, Page admins will be able to review applications and contact job seekers via Messenger, “all on mobile and all in one place,” Facebook notes. And, yes, there is the opportunity to pay to “boost” job posts to reach a larger or more relevant audience.

“It was great because it was easy,” says another early Facebook Job Bookmark tester Wendy Grahn, co-owner of the Chicago-based Lakeview Kitchen and Market. “It took three minutes to fill out the information and put it out there. Then someone saw the post, we talked, and it was done.”